On Monday, New England quarterback Tom Brady suggested Revis may be injured. Trailing 17-13 early in the fourth quarter, the Pats drove to the Jets 22-yard line but Brady couldn’t connect with Mitchell, the rookie from Georgia, running in the end zone. He also missed the first two games of the season – and was held to one catch in his first two games on September 22 and October 2 – due to a hamstring injury suffered in the preseason.
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On a day when the sledding was rough, yes, a number of unheralded players, many on a maligned defense, pitched in to help Brady make history.
Tyrod Taylor’s 16-yard touchdown pass to Justin Hunter with 10:46 remaining put the Bills ahead for good during a second half in which the teams traded the lead five times. He’s done a great job of that. He missed two days of practice with a balky knee and it showed, especially early on. His passes repeatedly sailed high over receivers’ heads, perhaps because he could not step fully into his throws.
For Bowles, the goal remains to win games now – despite the growing public sentiment that that’s the least important thing as the season continues to spiral.
After a miracle catch by Quincy Enunwa for a 22-yard touchdown with Malcolm Butler in good coverage made it 17-13 Jets in the fourth quarter, Brady marched the Patriots from the 25 to the Jet 23 on four pass completions and a run.
As always, Brady did a good job of spreading the ball around on his way to going 30/50 for 286 passing yards, two touchdowns, and an 89.3 passer rating. That left Brady in the open space to run downfield, and possibly block one of the Jets defenders. “Of course, I was down”. “It was a long week”.
“I’m not trying to defend him or anything, but playing with him and having him as a friend, you just see that it’s tougher over there now probably with how things are going”. Say what you want about the team’s performance this season, but they didn’t give up in this one.
Leading up to Sunday’s game, Brady was asked, while at the podium, about his thoughts on his achievements and milestone. Among the Jets’ inactives was C Nick Mangold (ankle), who missed his fourth straight game. Trickier will be determining how much to push Gronkowski’s return to the field.
Upon resuming play, the Patriots didn’t hesitate to strike. Edelman had two drops, whereas Mitchell was more the “go-to guy” type. “I think Bill said that seven of the last eight games are like one score or overtime that we played them”.
While Gabriel’s numbers look nice, potential owners should proceed with caution – Gabriel has just 18 targets over the last four games. But he came back and was taken out of the game after three catchless drives with a new back injury. They shouldn’t need him to beat the Ravens the following Monday.
Speaking of the Rams, although they got blown out by the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, their first overall selection in the 2016 NFL Draft looked pretty good. They are winning close games. The offensive line struggled to protect Brady.
That has been a common refrain for Revis this season for the Jets (3-8).
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New England’s defense forced the three-and-out on the opening series of the second half following a holding penalty against the Jets to start the drive. It was either have Gostkowski try a 54-yard field goal, punt, or go. None of it is devastating, but all of it is concerning for a team with ambitions that stretch well beyond December. In his postgame press conference, Belichick used two of his favorite words, “situational football”. This next month will count the most, too, and the Patriots will have to manage it carefully.
